Hartsel to Salida 8/5 50 miles

        We decided to cut out 30 miles of pure dreary pastureland leaving Como, to do 40 miles of pure dreary pastureland from Hartsel to Salida(pronounced with a long"i") and then 2 miles in the aspens, and 10 screaming fun downhill for a total of 52.  We had a little excitement with a pond crossing.  Daren decided to go through the deepest part which was an interesting decision, rather than follow me through the shallowest part.  Then, another cow herding episode.  There were several cows and one bull who just stood glaring at us.  Most of the cows passed in front of us across the road and the bull did not budge.  And then to our shock, one of the cows mounted another cow right in the middle of the road.  How inappropriate!  Couldn't even wait to get across the road, and the bull never did move!  Sorry no pics of that one.
Eventually we made it to a 2 mile climb up through beautiful aspens and topped out with a view of the "fourteeners" of the Sawatch mountain range.  14,000ft!  Our downhill to follow was one of the best ever.  We got up to 30 mph several times with only gentle braking here and there.  The views spectacular, and only one near miss with a Bronco on a blind corner.  We entered Salida under drizzly skies, and found Silas and Sarah at the rv park on the end of town, right on the Arkansas River.
We decided to take the next day off and float the river with a guided group.  The water level was pretty low, but the guides managed to make it pretty fun, spinning the raft on rocks and in circles, and surfing, which was somewhat terrifying.  By surfing, I mean they end up backwards over a small waterfall and somehow manage to keep the bow of the boat buried in the waterfall.  The back end of the raft raises up as if surfing down a wave, while the two front paddlers madly paddle and brace themselves in chest deep water.  The front two paddlers were Daren and I.  I thought I was going to get ripped out of the boat!  I swallowed about a gallon of water.  I think this was for the guides enjoyment only!  The rest of the paddle was pretty tame, but through a awe inspiring rocky canyon.  That night we rode into town for some great pizza.  Salida is a hub for many outdoor adventures, rafting, hiking, biking.  In fact the one of their residents took 7th place in the Great Divide Mtn. Bike race this year.


More pics here